Students begin oral exams with assessors unhired and unpaid by the State

Thousands of students have this week begun oral Irish exams with teachers who are not paid by the State Examinations Commission ahead of a strike on Thursday over teacher opposition to such practices.

The Association of Secondary Teachers Ireland (ASTI) and Teachers’ Union of Ireland (TUI) oppose assessing their own students for parts of a revised Junior Certificate. Instead, they say, all exams should be conducted by SEC-employed personnel only.

Their second strike day comes after talks with Education Minister Jan O’Sullivan last week failed to break the impasse on the junior cycle reforms.